Mar 22, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Saturday of the 5th week of Lent
Saint Turibius of Mongrovejo, Bishop
Gospel – John 11:45-56
“it is better for one man to die for the people, than for the whole nation to be destroyed”. This is true regarding the death of Jesus Christ on the cross for all of us. He died for each one of us. And not only for each of us but also to gather together in unity the scattered children of God. The unity of the scattered children is through the cross of Christ because the children of God are scattered due to sin and selfishness. The unity is brought by the atonement and the selfless sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Jesus in the cross unites the children of God, in love and selflessness. This is what the Pharisees are worried. The people getting united in love and not around the laws they dictate. They don’t even acknowledge their faults. They blame the Romans about it. But people are looking for Jesus in the temple because, they want to be united around him. Let’s reflect: Lent is to be united as children of God around the sacrifice of Christ.
Mar 21, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Friday of the 5th week of Lent
Gospel – John 10:31-42
“you are only a man and you claim to be God”. This is the lack of understanding of Pharisees and scribes. At the end of this gospel, we read that, “He went back again to the far side of the Jordan to stay in the district where John had once been baptising. Many people who came to him there said, ‘John gave no signs, but all he said about this man was true’; and many of them believed in him”. So, the question is that how is this possible. The studied and elite group did not understand Jesus. But the simple people who came to the far side of the Jordan believed in Jesus. Read again what they are saying, “John gave no signs, but all he said about this man was true”. So, they believed in the preaching of John the Baptist about conversion, and they repented. That is why their hearts are open to know Jesus Christ as God. When we are not ready to be converted, we close ourselves in our idea of God. When we are converted, we open ourselves to what God wants to show to us. We can see the Father’s work in the actions of the Son, Jesus Christ. So, let’s repent to understand the person of Jesus Christ. Let’s reflect: Lent is the time to repent and convert ourselves, so that we are open to the revelations of God.
Mar 20, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Thursday of the 5th week of Lent
Gospel – John 8:51-59
“‘I tell you most solemnly, before Abraham ever was, I Am”. This is the truth about Jesus Christ. He is God. He is the second person of the Holy Trinity. That is why He existed always. And He will exist always. He is the incarnate Word of God. And that is why Jesus is saying, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to think that he would see my Day; he saw it and was glad.” The Word of God is same to Abraham and to all and in all time. And whoever believes in this Word of God, participates in this eternity. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. The dwelling is not in one moment of the history. This dwelling encompasses all moments of the history. Or better said, all moments in the history and even all future moments belong to this one moment in history – the incarnation. Hearing this they picked up stone to throw at him. Jesus hid himself and left the temple. When His Word is not recognized, He hides and leaves the temple. Let’s reflect: Lent is the time to connect all moments of my life to the moment of incarnation.
Mar 19, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Wednesday of the 5th week of Lent
Gospel - John 8:31-42
“‘If you make my word your home you will indeed be my disciples, you will learn the truth and the truth will make you free.’” Jesus is asking a very precise thing “to make His word our home”. How is make the Word of God our home? This is the point of our reflection. If we want to make the Words of Jesus, our home, first we have to find space for that home in our life. The space to make home with the Words of Jesus. Often, we have occupied the spaces of our life with other things like our selfish interests and ideas. So, we don’t have space to build our home with the Word of God. Therefore, we must make space to build our home with the Words of Jesus. Then the second is to really make the home. That is when the Word of God makes the decisions in our daily life. Then the Words of Jesus becomes the home where everything is secondary to it. Let’ reflect: Lent is the time to make home with the words of Jesus.
Mar 18, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Gospel - Matthew 1:16,18-21,24
“Joseph son of David do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit”. Here Joseph represents each one of us. He represents us because we all have this fear. Fear and anxiety are always blocking our way to accept the will of God in our life. In those moments when we don’t know what to do, in those moments when we get stuck and frightened to proceed, St. Joseph is our model. He received his light in a dream. St. Joseph wished so much to be a man of honor so that he wanted so much to find out the will of God regarding the question before him. This ardent desire to do the good is the reason for the dream. The dream of St. Joseph is where his deep desire to do the good and the profound love of God meet. Dream is the prayer of where the longing of human heart for God meets the plan of God for us. Let’s reflect: Can we dream like St. Joseph where the longing of human heart for God meets the plan of God for us?
Mar 17, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Monday of the 5th week of Lent
Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop, Doctor
Gospel - John 8:1-11
‘If there is one of you who has not sinned, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’ The Pharisees and scribes brought this woman caught in the act of committing adultery to test Jesus. They wanted to find out whether Jesus will be lenient in the law of Moses. In this episode we see how God sees the sins and how man sees the sins. For men the sins are occasion to accuse and condemn. But for Jesus, the sin is the occasion to save the sinner. Man condemn the sinner and continue to sin. Jesus condemn the sin but save the sinner. This love of God is very important to understand what we must do with our sins. Jesus loves us and wants to save us. He condemns ths sin but He loves each person and He sees each person different from the sin. The sinner is not identified with the sin. The sinner is identified as a person to be saved and loved. Let’s reflect: Lent is to understand the love of God which saves the sinner but condemns the sin.
